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Guest
Column: State Sen. Tom O'Mara

“Click here for the future”

ALBANY, Feb. 28 -- The calendar’s turning to March,
which at the State Capitol means the Governor and the Legislature are
about to get down to brass tacks on this year’s budget negotiations.
But before our full attention turns to Albany, I’d like to stay
focused for a while longer on some recent, fabulous news right out of
our own back yard.

I simply can’t say enough about the Southern Tier Central Regional
Planning and Development Board’s (STC) recent announcement of a
$12.2 million project to construct an optical fiber broadband network
across Chemung, Schuyler and Steuben counties. It promises to dramatically
expand regional access to high-speed Internet service.

Not
only is it an exciting collaboration among numerous local leaders and
organizations. Not only is it moving forward thanks to a $10 million investment
from Corning Incorporated. And not only will this new network be patterned
after one in Ontario County that’s recognized nationally as a model
for rural broadband expansion. But maybe most significant of all, at a
time when America’s focus on closing the “digital divide”
has never been sharper, this new project puts our region squarely on the
map of noteworthy broadband development projects taking place anywhere
across the nation – which means that it will likely help put us
more often on the radar of great places to do business. That’s important.

It’s been estimated that at least 750,000 rural New Yorkers do
not have high-speed Internet access. As the issue of broadband has gained
increasing attention over the past four years, The Communications Workers
of America (CWA) has published an annual report, “Speed Matters”
(www.speedmatters.org), examining Internet upload and download speeds
in all 50 states. In 2008, New York had the fourth-fastest download speed
ranking. Last year, we fell to the fifth-fastest. The CWA has noted, however,
that Internet speeds in New York “vary tremendously by region, with
Upstate and Western New York considerably slower than Downstate.”
Overall, according to the association’s latest report, 39% of New
Yorkers have Internet speeds that are below minimum national standards.

To put it as succinctly as possible, then, this new local broadband network
is a big deal. For a lot of reasons. I’m currently conducting an
online survey on my website, omara.nysenate.gov, that includes a question
asking whether respondents are optimistic or pessimistic about this region’s
future. So far, the response is a mixed bag of optimism and uncertainty.
Projects like this one can only serve to make us more optimistic.

As a state (as well as a nation), we’re facing unprecedented short-
and long-term challenges. But if there’s one widespread agreement
emerging on what the response needs to be, it’s that government
leaders can’t dismantle the foundations of economic strength. There’s
an undeniable case being made – and it’s echoed across every
level of government -- that the No. 1 key to the future is an economy
that’s producing good, private-sector jobs and providing long-term
economic security and stability.

In the 21st century economy, this means closing the “digital divide.”
Providing New Yorkers with equal access to high-speed Internet is critical.
High-speed Internet has become fundamental to economic and educational
success. That’s what makes the recent news especially exciting and
promising for our region. We’re demonstrating the kind of public-private
creativity, innovation and commitment that can help us stand apart in
a fierce, global competition for jobs and economic opportunities –
especially the high-tech opportunities of this new economy.